A thumbnail storyboard is a great tool to bring ideas to life without investing huge amounts of time. But what is a thumbnail storyboard? We’re going to answer that question by defining the term, outlining some examples, and by providing a free template so that you can make some thumbnail storyboards of your own. By the end, you’ll have everything you need to sketch out your next great idea.
Storyboard Thumbnails
First, let’s define storyboard
Storyboards are used in a wide array of industries, including, but not limited to: marketing and creative production. But storyboards are useful tools for everybody because they help get ideas out of our heads and onto the page.
StudioBinder’s storyboard creator app gives you everything you need to create and share awesome storyboards. The video below will show you how to get started!
What is a Thumbnail Storyboard? • Storyboard Tutorial: How to Make a Storyboard in StudioBinder
Storyboards can be intimidating for unseasoned artists – but that’s where thumbnail storyboards come in! Let’s formally define the term.
THUMBNAIL STORYBOARD DEFINITION
What is a thumbnail storyboard?
A thumbnail storyboard is a sketch storyboard in which each panel is about the size of a thumbnail. Thumbnail storyboards are used to quickly work through potential ideas before refining them for the full storyboard.
Characteristics of Thumbnail Storyboards:
- Quick
- Small
- Sketch
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Thumbnail Storyboard Guide
How to make a thumbnail storyboard
One of the biggest misconceptions about thumbnail storyboards is that they are “less” than regular storyboards. But that’s not true! Thumbnail storyboards are tools that allow artists to quickly think through potential ideas; but sometimes it takes a lot of iteration to find the right one. Artists may work through dozens of thumbnail storyboards before choosing and refining the right panel.
For more tips on using StudioBinder’s storyboard creator app, check out the video below!
What is a Thumbnail Storyboard? • Storyboard Tutorial: More Tips on Storyboarding in StudioBinder
Want to make a thumbnail storyboard of your own? Download our free template below:
What is a Thumbnail Storyboard? • Download FREE Thumbnail Storyboard Template
For your thumbnail storyboard: try writing out your ideas for each shot first, then draw multiple sketches of how it might look. You can then compare and contrast your thumbnail panels to see how they fit with others!
Up Next
How to Storyboard a Montage
Looking for more storyboarding inspiration? Check out our next article on storyboarding montages, where we break down examples from Rushmore, Gorillaz music videos, and more! By the end, you’ll know how montages are storyboarded, and how to make your own.
Up Next: Guide to Pre-Visualizing a Montage →
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